


The Way Things Are

by lucradiss



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Angst with a kind of happy ending, Betrayal, Dream is a good big brother, Hurt/Comfort, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, One Shot, Tommy's a piece of shit in this one guys get ready, Traitor!Tubbo, Tubbo is pretty sad ngl, Tubbo is sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:08:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26354725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lucradiss/pseuds/lucradiss
Summary: "Meet me at the lake," He whispered, knowing who it was meant for and hoping the recipient would understand.---AU belongs to @Unidentified.box (I think that's how it's spelled) on Instagram!! he's a good friend of mine, go check him out! and while you're there, check me out too @Lucaguts ! I'm working on a comic of my own :))
Relationships: Clay | Dream & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Comments: 15
Kudos: 778





	The Way Things Are

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written in a while lol. Hope this makes up for it :)))

Freedom. That's all Tubbo wanted. That's all L'Manburg wanted- freedom from the tyrannical rule of the DreamSMP, freedom from the way they were treated by Dream and the others, freedom to do and say what they wanted without repercussions. Freedom to be at peace with themselves and their country, however small it may be.  
Tubbo knew this. He knew this well, as it had been ingrained into his psyche from the time this stupid war started. He knew this because Wilbur constantly talked about freedom, wrote ballads about walking the grassy knolls of L'manburg, lamenting the fallen and pining for a better future. He knew this because Fundy worked tirelessly with Wilbur on battle strategies, Eret giving ideas for the ultimate plan. And he knew this because Tommy... Tommy wasn't the same once he got a taste of what freedom they had before the war.

He sighed, taking the ratted cloth away from his netherite sword and looking into the hard, black metal. His own face stared back up at him, a shell of what he'd been previous. Where there used to be cheeks of roses, punctuated by a gleaming, toothy smile, there was sallow skin and deep bags under baleful brown eyes, disheartened and tired. Yeah. Tired. All he wanted to do these days was lay in his bed and sleep- it didn't feel worth it to get up and face the day; didn't feel worth it to listen to battle strategies and talk of what freedom they would have in the future; didn't feel worth it to spar with Tommy, only to die over and over until Wilbur said they could stop for the day. Everything just... hurt. Mentally and physically. Tommy was the worst- god, was Tommy awful. He would chastise Tubbo's every move, yell at him for no reason, insult and berate him constantly. He would be outside tending to his bees and Tommy would come out and kill one, seemingly without a care. Tubbo would get angry and confront the other boy, only to be told by Wilbur to 'Back down- there are more important things than childish squabbles over bees'. It hurt, being told that his problems were so frivolous. It hurt, being told what to do and what to say. It hurt, never getting any recognition or praise from the people that claimed to love him so dearly. He felt, frankly, like a punching bag, worn and grey where it used to be bright red, ripping apart at the seams and spilling sand onto a once-clean ground.  
A droplet fell onto the sword, distorting Tubbo's reflection slightly. He sniffed. When did he start crying? He didn't know, but he cried nonetheless, curling in on himself and putting a gloved hand to his mouth to muffle his sobs.  
The glove smelled like honey and polish, a mix between the hard, headache-inducing odor of the polish he used to clean everybody's swords and the sweet, tangy scent of honey. He wasn't thinking about the weird combination of smells, though, when his body shook with another sob. He whined, high-pitched and pitiful, and he gasped, catching his breath before releasing another sob. He didn't want to deal with this. He couldn't handle it anymore. His best friend hated him, his teammates didn't care about him- all he had were his bees, and even those were dwindling as Tommy destroyed them. 

More tears fell onto the sword from his cheeks and he quickly wiped them off, hoping the polish wouldn't smudge because of it.  
There was a harsh knock at the door and Tubbo gasped, wiping his eyes and quickly trying to compose himself. "C-Come in!" he said, cringing at how broken his voice sounded. Tommy burst into the room, absolutely fuming, and regardless of the reason, Tubbo knew this rage would be taken out on him. 

"Fucking green fucking bastard..."  
So it was one of those rants. Tubbo wiped his eyes again to get the residuals from the tears and sniffed, trying to make it look as if he'd never been crying at all.  
"Fucking- Dream is such a bitch! Ugh! All he does is try to kill us and take our land! He's such a little fucking bitch! I'm going to- I swear to god-"

Tommy, a snarl on his face, turns to Tubbo and kicks him in the leg, hard. Tubbo yelps and flinches, pulling his foot onto the bed, the cries he'd been trying to repress coming back full force. Tears sprung from his eyes and 

"Oh, stop crying, you big baby. You're fucking fine," Tommy spat. "You're lucky I didn't kick you harder, you stupid bitch." He turned on his heel and stalked out of the room, cape billowing behind him. Tubbo sniffed, rubbing the spot on his leg he knew would form a bruise. He had countless little scratches, bruises, maladies and blemishes that could have only been caused by Tommy's abuse. Tubbo had told Wilbur about it, but the older man just brushed it off under the excuse that everyone was on edge during this brutal war and couldn't fully control what they did.  
Tubbo whimpered, putting his foot down and trying to stand, placing the sword from his lap to the bed on which he had been sitting. He limped for a couple of seconds and then he forced himself to regain his footing. He didn't need to show more weakness- he'd be chewed out for that too. He looked out the window of his and Tommy's little dirt shack that Wilbur had made in order to 'protect' them. It wasn't as if the pain would be any worse out there in the DreamSMP. He bit his lip, watching the sun set peacefully over the fields of grass Wilbur wanted so badly to walk down.

He left the shack, looking around and sighing in relief when he didn't see anyone. He half-limped outside and down the path towards the exit of L'Manburg.  
"Where are you going?"

That voice was unmistakable, soft and yet firm, tinted with an English accent not unlike his own. Wilbur. He turned, looking the other Brit in the eyes, making sure not to let his gaze linger too long the scar stretching across his nose. 

"To the lake," Tubbo responded sheepishly. "I'm tired, and I need some fresh air."

"The air is never fresher than when it's in L'Manburg," Wilbur joked, a small smile on his face. "But go ahead. Be sure to be back within a couple of hours, Dream and his crew like to bombard us at night sometimes and we need reinforcements."

Tubbo nodded. Despite the neglect and obvious favoring of Tommy of him, Tubbo rather liked Wilbur. He was never outright mean to him and he always found a way to smile in the worst situations. He wrote music, he sang them for the citizens of L'Manburg- Wilbur was a gentle soul.

He turned back and headed outside L'Manburg then, turning the corner and heading to the lake he liked to sit near. He needed to think. To breathe. To assess his boundaries, his loyalties, and his mental health. He made it there uninhibited and sat down on the banks, picking up a stick and drawing little faces in the dirt. He drew a bee and chuckled lightly when an actual bee came over and landed on it.

He sighed, looking up as the sun began its descent over the crystal lake. It was bright, but not so bright he couldn't handle it. He noticed, around it, little stars began to speckle into vision, and he smiled. Tommy, before he was the way that he is, used to love the stars. He knew every constellation and would make sure Tubbo knew at least one of them.  
He caught Lyra in his vision and counted the stars within. Five. Only five. He sighed again and looked back down to his hands- grimy, covered in sword polish and soot, dirt beneath his nails. L'Manburg's small pond didn't provide much hygiene other than brushing his teeth; he missed that part of the DreamSMP. A shower sounded so nice right about then.

He thought about Tommy, about Wilbur, about Eret and Fundy. His battle-mates. His family. Yeah, they were his family, but it was getting harder to think of them that way. They hurt him day in and day out- he loved them so dearly, but it was so hard to handle. 

He suddenly heard footsteps behind him and turned around, looking for the source. To his horror, he saw the very man who he fought against- Dream, in all of his long-cloaked, mask faced glory, a concerned look about him.  
"Hello, Tubbo," he said, not unkindly, as he walked up to him. Tubbo noticed he had no weapons other than Not Penis, Dream's favorite crossbow, strapped to his belt. This only served to make him even more suspicious of Dream's intentions.

"What are you doing here, Dream?" He asked, his voice harsher than he would have liked. Dream didn't flinch or shirk away, however, only adopting a look of further concern.  
"I'm here to get away from it all. I need a chance to breathe every once in a while, y'know?"

Tubbo did know. He knew and understood fully. That was something he could personally relate to- getting overwhelmed and needing to take a step back. He wondered if Dream was trying to manipulate him by pandering to what made him tick, but he decided to disregard that because Dream really did sound so genuine.  
Tubbo studied him for a moment longer, then huffed, turning to put his chin on his knees once more. He heard those footsteps- light, agile, and yet tired and nearly staggering- walking over and stopping next to him, Dream sitting down cross-legged next to him.  
"They're so horrible to you, Tubbo."

Tubbo blanched at this. Dream's voice had been quiet, soft, empathetic. It was as if he felt for the younger boy, understood his struggles, wanted to see them resolved. Tubbo frowned, almost angry.

"Shut up. You don't know anything about this."

"I may not," Dream responded quickly, shrugging his shoulders. "But I see the way they treat you, even if from afar. Tommy is always snapping at you and beating you up, Wilbur ignores you-"

"We're in the middle of a war, Dream. They're gonna be on edge."

"Is that what they tell you when you express how you feel?"

Tubbo spun his head to look at Dream and tell him off for presuming to understand what he was going through, then the words died on his tongue. Dream's mask was off, worried green eyes inspecting him with caution. Tubbo knew that Dream never took that mask off. Not in front of anyone other than probably George and Sapnap, and even they wouldn't see Dream's face all that often. No, seeing those lightly freckled cheeks and straight nose was a privilege few had the chance to experience. 

"You're just a kid, Tubbo. You shouldn't be in this war... You don't deserve to live like this." He took Tubbo's hand, gently, while he was still baffled by Dream's lack of face covering, and pushed the sleeves up, exposing the bruises. "You don't deserve these bruises, those hurtful words. You should be able to keep your bee farm without the fear they'll be killed if Tommy gets even a little bit mad. You deserve attention and praise for things done right-"

"Why are you telling this to me?" Tubbo asked, his former distrust coming back through in his tone of voice.

Dream's facial expression softened even more and he cocked his head, looking Tubbo in the eyes with sympathy. "Join us, Tubbo. I want you to be happy, and all they do is make you hurt."

Tubbo's eyes widened. "What?" He hissed. "Are you kidding me?"

"You don't even have to join us! If I can somehow help, we can talk in secret-"

"Shut up."

"If you'd join us-"

"Shut up!" He stood, tears welling in his eyes, fists clenched in anger, glaring at Dream with malice. "My problems are not your business! And I surely will not join you!"

Tears spilled over as he breathed angrily, each breath a huff of hot air. He growled and turned on his heel. "I'm leaving."

Dream sighed, picking up his mask and holding it in his hands as Tubbo stalked away from him into the direction of L'Manburg. He glanced over at the drawings the kid had did and frowned some. One was probably of himself, eyebrows drawn sad, and one was of Tommy, sharp, shark-like teeth in an angry snarl. His heart ached.  
He looked back up to Tubbo as he disappeared beyond the trees, watching him walk away into the direction of his pain.

\---

Tubbo sat in his chair, Dream's words from days earlier turning over and over in his head. Tommy's rambling was background noise, naught but a buzz in his ear as he thought about what could have been. It would be so easy just to... to take that hand that was reaching out to him. To ask for help. To accept the solace that was being offered. For once, he would have something he considered to be a family. He swallowed hard. Why didn't he accept Dream's proposal?

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a swift punch to the side of his head, too aggressive to be playful.

"See? This is what I'm talking about- you're not listening again! You stupid- Jesus fucking christ, you're-"

Tubbo stood, anger bubbling up in his chest, and stalked over to Tommy. "Would you..." He said lowly. Tommy opened his mouth to speak, probably to retort and yell at Tubbo some more, but he was interrupted by a hand curling around the fabric near his throat. "SHUT UP ALREADY!"

Tommy grabbed his 'friend's' arms, his teeth bared in a snarl. "What is your problem, I-"

"You..." Tubbo, eyes clouded by rage, pulled a small, netherite dagger from his belt. Tommy's eyes widened- he was low on health.

"Tubbo, wait-!"

And then he was dead. Just like that. A knife shoved into his side, blood dripping, looking up at Tubbo with a wide, fearful gaze. "T-"

TommyInnit was slain by Tubbo_.

\---

Tubbo, as he quickly packed what little he had in the shack and left, supposed he should have felt bad for wishing Tommy, his best friend, wouldn't respawn. But he didn't.  
He jogged over to what was his former base and quickly closed the door behind him, running over to his old chests and taking out what he needed-food, a bed, some extra armor and weapons, stuff like that- putting essentials in his inventory and clearing out what he didn't need for his trip. He stripped from his uniform and threw it on the floor, putting on the t-shirt and shorts he wore before this terrible, stupid war over discs and drugs.  
He put a hand to his mouth.  
"Meet me at the lake," He whispered, knowing who it was meant for and hoping the recipient would understand.

And, finishing with his preparations and walked out the door, he took one glance back at the uniform that lay there on the ground pitifully. He grimaced, walking back inside and pulling a flint and steel from his chest. He snatched the clothing from the floor and threw it outside, setting it ablaze. It was almost cathartic, seeing it burn. The fire burned in his eyes, alighting his soul and making him hope for a better future. When it was finished burning, he stomped out the fire and set on his way to the lake, where he knew his savior would be waiting. He hoped, at least.

Relief washed over him when he saw that trademark green cloak gently whipping in the breeze as the man looked out onto the water. At the lake, he was already waiting. Facing the lake, wearing his usual smirk. Of course, he was. Tubbo didn't know what to say. Neither said anything at first- He was the first to break the silence. 

"So," He started dramatically, "what's the reason for this me-"

Dream stopped short when he heard erratic, tittering sobs coming from his counterpart. Tubbo had broken down, hand reached out, trembling violently, as his other hand tried desperately to wipe away tears that wouldn't stop. "Please..." The boy began,  
"Let me j-join you. P-Please- I'm- I can't take it anymore! I- I'm so tired of feeling like I'm useless and worthless and a burden- I don't wanna be hurt anymore!"

"Tubbo..."

"P-Please! I swear I'll d-do my b-best, I- I just want to-"

And suddenly he was being pulled into a hug. He gasped, choking on a sob, and couldn't help but to release it into Dream's shoulder. Everything from the past few weeks came tumbling out of his body in the form of cries and he just felt so weak doing all of this in front of Dream, the man who he was supposed to be joining, who he was supposed to be strong for-

"Tubbo, listen," Dream said gently, cutting off his self-destructive thoughts. "I don't want you on my team because of your strength or to fight. I want you here because I want you to be happy. You deserve to be happy."

Tubbo couldn't stop another sob from leaving his lips and he tried to stifle it in Dream's cloak. "You're not useless, or worthless, or a burden," Dream continued, putting his hands on Tubbo's shoulder and pushing him arm's length, taking off his mask to look the boy in the eyes. "You're amazing, just the way you are, and the fact that the people in L'Manburg can't see that is, frankly, ridiculous."

Tubbo gave a small smile, sniffing and rubbing his nose with a dirty hand. "Thank you..." He said quietly, another, softer sob bubbling from his chest. 

And Dream smiled, no smirk, just a genuine, loving grin, and reached his hand up to ruffle Tubbo's hair, just like Wilbur used to do before they all started fighting. He stood up tall and Tubbo saw just how kingly Dream looked, how regal, how... strong. He wondered why he didn't side with them in the first place. 

"So," Dream reached out his hand finally, a warm, caring expression on his scarred face. "Wanna come over to the DreamSMP? We have showers~" He said the last part jokingly, teasingly, to lighten the mood. Tubbo gave a watery chuckle. 

He took Dream's hand.


End file.
